Created for Hermione's Haven Bingo 2020 Fest! This is for my O4 square which was the prompt: Time Travel.

No beta, just Grammarly. If you love this (or hate it) please let me know about in a review! I made a collage for each of these, find it on my Tumblr at crochetawayhpff, and search HHBingo2020.

Pairing: Gen - Hermione Granger/Severus Snape - pre-relationship

Warnings: N/A

Summary: Hermione Granger decides that Severus Snape deserves a shot at a life not ruled by either Voldemort or Dumbledore.

Rating: G

Getting to Work

It all started with a small, black journal. Similar to the one that Tom Riddle used as a Horcrux, but different in the fact that it was filled with spiky handwriting that was so familiar to Hermione. She'd seen it on five years of Potions essays and a year's worth of Defense Against the Dark Arts essays. It was as familiar to her as her own loopy handwriting was. Because she poured over the notes Professor Snape had left for her. Yes, he was acerbic and sometimes downright cruel, but there was almost always a nugget of information hidden in those comments that Hermione mined as if they were the most precious gold.

And really, if education was as important as everyone said it was, they were precious gold. At least, Hermione thought so.

She should never have found the journal. But when she had Summoned the Horcrux books out of Professor Dumbledore's office, along came this small journal. What Professor Snape's journal was even doing in Dumbledore's office, she had no idea.

At first, she didn't think much of the journal. After all, she was running for her life, trying desperately to keep not only herself but Ron and most importantly, Harry, alive as well. It had stayed in her small-beaded bag for nearly two years before she finally got around to cleaning it out.

Stumbling across it a year and a half after the final battle had been a nasty trip down memory lane. Mostly, she was fine from the war. Mostly. As long as she didn't spend too much time thinking about the sacrifices that were made by people like Fred and Tonks and Remus, and of course, Snape.

Professor Snape had become something of a Byronic hero since his passing. Harry had worked tirelessly to clear his name. And clear it, he did. The tell-all written by Rita Skeeter that relied heavily on Snape's memories was a massive hit. Especially with the witches. Witch Weekly called it the most romantic story of all time. Hermione had snorted at that title. Sure, Snape devoting his life to save the child of the woman he loved was noble but romantic? To Hermione, it smacked of guilt and remorse. And an unhealthy obsession with a dead woman. A married dead woman to boot. Unrequited love might be considered romantic to most of the world, but Hermione found it just a little creepy.

That didn't mean she didn't feel bad about Professor Snape, because she certainly did. He didn't deserve the life he was given. As she considered his full life, in addition to what was written in the journal, she began to wonder if there was anything she could do for him. His body had never been found after the Final Battle which made her wonder if he was actually alive. Could that account for why his body had disappeared?

She knew Harry's theory was that the Death Eaters had taken him, but after reading through Snape's journal a third time, she just wasn't convinced. Snape could have survived. Once the idea took hold, she couldn't get it out of her head.

It was on the second anniversary of the Final Battle that she found the Time-Turner. Serendipitous, her brain supplied as she stared at it, dumbfounded. All the Time-Turners had been destroyed during the Department of Mysteries battle in her fifth year. Which is why the use of one hadn't crossed her mind before now. What on earth was the Black family doing with a Time-Turner hidden in the walls? She was actually happy she found it and not Harry. Hiding it quickly in her pocket, she promised to get it back out once she and Harry were done for the day. It had taken Harry a year to decide to make major renovations to Grimmauld Place and after a year of work, they only had a few more rooms left.

Later, when Harry had released her, she locked herself in her room to examine what she'd found. It wasn't like the Time-Turner she used back in third year, this one had three more rings. Peering closely, she could see the additional rings were marked with years, months, and weeks. Her breath caught in her throat. Snape didn't save himself. She saved Snape. It hit her, holding that Time-Turner as it twinkled in the dying light of the day. That was the day she began making her plans.

It was going to be hellish to jump back more than two years into the past. The Time-Turner would likely overheat and she would be stuck in the past until it cooled down, which meant she shouldn't jump back to the day of the Final Battle. She also needed time to prepare in the past. A few months, maybe as many as six. She would have to secure some sort of housing. It had been two years since the Final Battle and no word from Snape. That meant he was in hiding. Perhaps for good. She could at least get him set up temporarily before she jumped back to the present.

If she really wanted to do this the right way, she should jump at least a full year back, but that worried her. Going back in time in the middle of a war on Muggle-borns seemed foolish. If she were smart, she could get it done in six months. That's what she would have to shoot for.

The biggest question was where to make the jump. She would be going back in December, it would be cold and snowy, but also in the middle of the war. Grimmauld was out, they had abandoned it by December, but who knew if someone else had decided to camp out in it. Hogwarts was out, Snape would be headmaster, and while she knew he wasn't a traitor, it was still too dangerous. Hogsmeade for similar reasons. She didn't know if the Canterwauling Charm was in place back in December, but she couldn't take her chances. This also meant that the Shrieking Shack was also out.

The only place she could reliably use was her parent's home in London. She hadn't sold it yet, couldn't even bring herself back to see it yet. She'd set up several wards around it, so it was being taken care of in the barest sense. She turned the idea over in her mind. She should sell it. Get it sold quickly and she'd have a large sum of cash she could use to get Snape set up.

By the time she was actually ready to go back, another six months had passed. Which meant she was looking at a three-year jump back in time. She packed several anti-nausea potions, just to be safe, she put these in an easy to access pocket of her cloak instead of her beaded bag. Her parent's home was going to the new owners tomorrow. It was now or never.

She took a deep breath and pulled the Time-Turner out. It took a few minutes to get the rings set correctly, she took a deep breath, sat down on the floor, and let the pins loose. For a moment, she saw herself, the estate agent, and prospective buyers coming and going, and then nothing but the rapid passing of day and night. It seemed to take ages, hours even but was likely less than ten minutes.

When the world finally stopped spinning around her, she was glad she'd decided to do this sitting. Digging through her robe quickly, she pulled out the first anti-nausea potion and downed it. Just in time to stop herself from being sick. Her head thudded dully still and she closed her eyes, waiting for the feeling to pass.

After several long moments, she was feeling slightly better, she stood up.

A quick walk to the corner shop told her everything she needed to know. The date on the Financial Times was 8 December 1997. It was time to get to work.

~Fin~